The Brawl that Started it All
by Akela-Nakamura
Summary: She wondered how she'd not only found a fight...she'd somehow started it. She edged away from the fight...they'd never remember how this brawl started, so she was safe to slip back into the library. She figures she's safe until she's interrupted by a large, irritated man. One-shot. May be updated from time to time. Always complete.


**This is VERY loosely based on the AU prompt: "I brought my new kitten to school, hold him while I kick this idiot's ass." It's kinda not there until the end though lol.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Levy had never been one for drama, nor for getting involved in the fights Faerie ail Highthat Mavis's School for the Gifted seemed to thrive on. No, she was much more comfortable in the Library absorbing the _reams_ of information or hanging out with her small group of friends. Levy was a tiny girl, she _knew_ that. She also knew she more than made up for it in brains. She wasn't in the Top Ten smartest students for no reason. Conversely, she knew she'd never be in the Top Ten _Strongest_ either.

At least, not unless she grew about a foot, and suddenly learned how to use a sword without skewering herself.

See, it was called a School for the Gifted for a _reason._ Whether that Gift be brains, brawn, art, or something in between, _gifts_ of all kinds were welcomed here. Trained here. Levy's gift was her mind, as well as her kind heart. No gift went underappreciated here, and Levy's open mindedness and every forgiving heart were considered gifts.

So considering all this, she wondered how she'd not only _found_ a fight—she avoided them like the plague, she knew they could easily get out of hand and with her habit of being in her head more often than not, it was not a wise idea to be near one—she'd somehow _started_ it.

She'd been minding her own business, deep within her own thoughts, dodging people in the hall without much thought. It had become habit and people knew her by sight, they knew to get out of her way. Though she was small, her hair was sky bright, giving people a good head's up.

Her mind had been going a million miles an hour, analyzing a new theory from as many angles as she could. So she would've thought it be understandable that she hadn't been paying much attention, and she hadn't expected such a…violent response to a simple bump in the halls.

And it had been simple: She hadn't been looking, apparently, neither had he, and so when she smacked right into his chest, she'd been quick to apologize.

She hadn't expected him to stumble backwards as if Tasered, bump into one of the most explosive members of the school—Natsu Dragneel, a pyrotechnical genius if there ever was one—and cause a massive fight in the hall. Levy knew it didn't take much to spark a fight in the school, but a simple _bump?_ Surely, that was overdoing it. Within seconds, the man she'd bumped into had started shouting insults at the pink-haired man, causing his frienemy, Gray Fullbuster—a strange mix of Ice Sculpting genius and winter survivalist specialist—to get involved as well.

It didn't take long for it to get completely out of control from there. More people joined in the fight, for no more reason than the fact that they could. Many members of the School were very good with martial arts and other body-honing activities, making their brawls pretty evenly matched body strength wise. Though it was clear that those with military training or some other fight club-like knowledge had the advantage over those who were simply in shape.

The man she bumped into, Gajeel Redfox, Gifted in mechanics, and all things metal, with an intense focus on his own special brand of fighting, was dominating most of the 'competition'. Only Natsu and Gray were matches for him, and other members of the brawl stayed out of the way of the overzealous group.

Really, _she'd_ caused all this?

She edged away from the fight, lest she be dragged in by some idiot who didn't use his brain to realize that she _didn't fight._ They'd never remember how this brawl started, so she was safe to slip back into the library and hide there until Erza, Laxus or Master came to break up the fight.

She shuddered to think what Erza would do if the fight didn't break up before she got there. Sure, Laxus could be scary, but he usually broke up a fight by calling all members involved idiots or some such insult, shooing them with whacks to the end and grumbling.

Master called them all brats, threatened detention, and laughed it off, calling his brats boisterous.

Erza…well suffice it say that Gray and Natsu were reduced to shaking shells of themselves when Erza brought down her fury. Natsu had the unnerving habit of saying "Aye sir" to everything she said while pretending to be the best of friends with Gray.

Honestly, it was both scary and sort of pathetic—on the boy's parts—how she managed to reduce them to terrified puddles without really trying.

Levy sighed as she reached her safe spot—the giant central Library of the school. It encompassed three floors, all swirling up to a giant stained glass skylight of the school's founder, Mavis. It was cozy, warm, and filled to the brim with _knowledge_. The bottom of the Library held the Liberian's desk and tables for people to read at. There were even beanbag chairs that people could settle down with a book, or simply lie and star up at Mavis, who watched from three stories above. The computer lab was located in the room across the hall from the Library's main floor access. When it was built, computers weren't a thing, and the room hadn't been designed for them in mind.

There was literally no _room_ for the massive amount of computers kept in the computer lab. The bookcases in the library took up most of the room, circling up to Mavis like soldiers. Each bookcase was on a 'step' of sorts, there was no clear indication of floors, for the bookcases were on a spiral giant staircase. Only a small reading nook at the top was clear of books, a mere twenty feet from the glittering patron of the school. Bookshelves were built into the walls as well, so that when Levy stepped off the walking path into the hall created by the shelves, she was almost completely surrounded by books.

No one knew _exactly_ how many books were in the library. The most popular or relevant had been entered into the computer system and given a bar code, but that was only a small percentage of the books in the Library. Many hadn't been held in decades, and knowledge of their location, contents and even _existence_ had been lost to time. It was easy to believe that not every book was in the system—after all, the books started at the main floor, swirling around the edge of the Library before finally starting to climb up to Mavis.

If Levy _had_ to estimate how many books were in the Library, she'd guess that there was no _less_ than eight thousand…but that was conservative. There were two thousand listed in the Library's database, and more being added every day. Logically, she knew that she'd never read them all, and if even if she somehow _could,_ she'd never remember all the knowledge contained within the pages. She absorbed what interested her, and had made it her personal goal to read as many books as humanly possible during her four years here.

The School also doubled as a college, with the third floor being for college students only, so it was possible she could have access to this treasure drove for up to four more years after High School. Though she was _positive_ that if she asked Makarov, the current head of the school—affectionately called 'Master' by most of the students—he'd allow her to come in at two A.M. to read ten years after she'd graduated if it made her smile.

He was a big softie like that sometimes.

She gave a wave to the Librarian, a woman so used to Levy's presence in the Library she was more shocked by her absence from it than anything, gave her a nod and a warm smile. With the fight already out of her mind, Levy wasted no time to rushing up the steps, only to find herself cursing the height and distance between the treads. Sure, it was cool design, but for one as small as she, it was workout and half getting up to the top. The Librarian had a specially designed cart to lug books up and down the structure, and Levy had a smaller version for her own use. It was her own fault that she liked working at the top of the library, so much so that she'd made herself a nest of sorts there, as she was rarely disturbed and people almost never bothered to climb all the way to the top—especially seeing as the _only_ entrance was at the very bottom.

Well, the only _public_ entrance. With all her poking around the shelves, Levy had found a couple hidden doors. She wasn't even sure if Makarov knew they were there. She'd explored them more than once, and they had saved her from being late to class on more than one occasion.

Once she'd finally reached the top, she settled into her current topic—astronomy, she blamed Lucy—and let the hours melt away.

"Dammit, I'm talkin' to ya," A gruff, irritated voice snapped out. Levy pulled herself out of a book and blinked at the tall, muscle bound man who was staring at her in annoyance—and if she wasn't mistaken, he was slightly out of breath from his climb. He was ruffed up a bit, his clothing showing some wear and he sported a Band-Aid on his head—as it was a graphic Band-Aid, depicting a cartoon-ish Dragon, she could only assume that the nurse's adorable little assistant, Wendy, had patched him up after the fight.

"I'm sorry, what?" She questioned wondering how long he'd been trying to get her attention. She wasn't used to being interrupted.

"I _said,"_ He huffed out in obvious irritation. "That ya ought to be glad that Makarov didn't ask how the fight started and that I didn't have ta rat yer ass out."

"Even if you did, I wouldn't have gotten into trouble," She retorted, carefully marking her page. " _You're_ the one that jumped back from me as if I was Typhoid Mary and made the mistake of slamming into _Natsu_ of all people."

" _I_ wasn't the one with her head in the damn clouds, runnin' into people," He snarled back.

"That's the norm for me," Levy smirked. "People usually keep out of my way. You weren't paying attention either, were you?"

"Hard to see a shrimp like you," He said grumpily, crossing his arms and allowing her to appreciate the ripping muscles that lingered there. She shrugged. She'd been getting short jokes since she was in elementary school, if he wanted to get under her skin, _Shrimp,_ wasn't going to cut it.

She would not admit how it made her want to give him some sassy retort, because out of all the short jokes she'd ever received, somehow, _Shrimp,_ somehow dug more than she was willing to admit, even to herself.

"Did you come up here just to tell me to watch where I was walking?" Levy changed the subject quickly. "Awfully long walk for something so petty,"

"No," He scowled. "Come up here 'cause Salamander's girl said you had an in with the shelter."

She blinked in surprise. "U-uh yeah." She stuttered. Of all the things she'd expected him to ask that wasn't it. "I volunteer sometimes. I didn't know you wanted a pet,"

"For a friend," He muttered and she didn't believe him at all.

"Right." She said. "I could tell the shelter that your _friend_ is interested in a pet, if you give me some info on what kind of pet your _friend_ wants." He narrowed his eyes, knowing he was being mocked but rolled his eyes and let it go.

"My _friend_ ," He growled. "Is lookin' for a cat. And not some pansy. A cat that can handle loud shit and has some damn common sense to stay away from sharp crap, and open freakin' flame."

It was common knowledge that Natsu's cat—that he thought was a secret but _so_ wasn't—had to be watched at all times, lest he wander into dangerous workshops and wreak havoc. Levy swore that at knew _exactly_ what mischief it caused and did it to drive everyone insane and give Natsu heart attacks thinking his cat was going to get roasted alive, skewered, or something equally horrific. She was also sure the cat had gotten his reckless personality, and was simply acting on examples given by a _horrible_ role-model.

She also knew that Gajeel was jealous of the cat, because for all his insanity, Happy was always by Natsu's side, and often provided a distraction while Natsu pulled off some prank or snuck food out of the kitchen. Wendy, one of the youngest Gifted in the school, also had a cat, who Levy swore could communicate solely through unimpressed glares and irritated flicks of her snow-white tail. Sting and Rogue, who competed with Natsu, Gray, and Gajeel for being the most annoying, destructive idiots in the school—well more Sting than Rogue—had cats as well, and as all of them were related through some convoluted insane family, competition between them was insanely high.

So if everyone else had a cat, then she should've known Gajeel would get one as well.

"I can tell them that," She said amused. "Anything else?"

"Yeah," Gajeel puffed himself up. "He'd better be the best damn cat in the whole damn county."

"I'll see if I can arrange that," Levy said dryly, plucking out her phone to make the text to the shelter. "All done," she said a few minutes later. "You're _friend_ can go look at cats a five tonight, if he's free, that is."

"Should be," Gajeel muttered. "C'ya Shrimp."

" _How about a thank you?"_ She yelled down to him, after realizing he'd walked away. Her only response was a strange laugh, and the _clunk, clunk, clunk_ of his boots as he jogged down the stairs. Muttering to herself, Levy turned her attention back to her books.

 _Those_ at least, didn't walk away from her after demanding her help.

* * *

Levy didn't hear from Gajeel for a week after that. The shelter told her that he'd gone through almost every cat in the place and it had taken him an hour to settle on a cat that he deemed worthy of him. Picky bastard. Jet and Droy, her best friends, had dragged her from the Library, claiming that even _she_ needed to eat and despite her belief, she couldn't survive on knowledge alone. With them at her side, thoughts of Gajeel and what cat could _possibly_ be up to his standards fell out of her head.

After Lunch, she left Jet and Droy to the mercy of their classes, going to her locker to grab her bag. She had class in fifteen minutes, and for once she wasn't toeing the line with being late. She nearly jumped out of her shoes when a dark shadow suddenly blocked the light coming from the giant windows the lined the outside of the school.

"Thanks," A gruff voice said and she grinned into her locker before turning around, affixing a frown on her face.

"Ah, so you admit the cat was for you." She said and his expression turn to an embarrassed pout, and turn his head to the side. It was an interesting expression, what with that fact he was six foot something and covered in piercings.

"S'not a big deal," He muttered.

"You're welcome." She said, taking pity on him. He wasn't exactly one for words. Before he could say more—or walk away again, if that was his plan—Romeo, one of the instructors sons, shot around the corner, his expression gleeful and with a whooping Natsu fast on his heels. Gray, dripping wet and pissed, stalked after them, dark eyes alight with revenge. Natsu, high on the euphoria of ticking off his rival, made the mistake of tossing a water balloon at Gajeel, hitting the tall man in the side. Gajeel's deep red eyes locked onto Natsu's green ones. Slowly, Gajeel reached into his sweatshirt pocket and pulled out a languorous black cat, causing Levy to gape in shock. He'd brought his cat to school? Of course, Natsu and others did it to, why would _he_ be any different?

"Hold him," Gajeel instructed. "I gotta idiot to kill."

Natsu tore off, Romeo on his heels. Gray and Gajeel gave each other a nod, a sign that they would kill the idiots together and took off after them. Levy looked down at the cat, which looked up at her with a bored expression. The cat was mostly black except for his muzzle and the crescent shaped scar beside his left eye. She looked at her watch—she had class in five minutes!

"Guess you're coming with me," She said to the cat. Gajeel, she realized, had neglected to give her the feline's name. With a sigh, she plopped the cat into her bag, where he road quite comfortably on the stack of books within, and went to her class.

If Gajeel wanted his cat back, he'd have to come find her.

* * *

Levy was surprised. She'd figured Gajeel would break down the door to her class, demanding the she give his cat back. Her class had been over for a half an hour, and she was in the library, staring at the cat that looked like he wanted to explore. To cause trouble or simply find a place to nap, she wasn't sure. He stretched, leaped onto the small table she used as a catch-all, and laid out in the sun. Focused on her books, it wasn't until the cat leaped from the table, landed her lap and twitched his tail that she realized that Gajeel had been staring at her for five minutes.

"Cat-napper." He accused when he had her attention. She was surprised he'd waited until he had her attention before speaking.

"You're the one he dropped him in my hands and walked off." She muttered still mostly looking at her book. "You're lucky he's well-behaved. He didn't make a fuss in my class and he's been very good in the library."

"Cat. Napper." He said again eyes narrowing. "Traitor." He hissed to the cat, who seemed content in her lap. She swore he smiled. "Why the hell didn't ya text me and tell me ya were takin' my cat to class?"

"Maybe because I don't have your number?" She offered innocently. Gajeel froze, flicked eyes to her face and away.

He spat out a number so fast it took her a minute to realize it was his phone number. She dug out her phone—managing not to dislodge the cat—and quickly made a new contact, making him repeat the number slower.

"There, ya got it," He muttered still glaring at the cat. "You comin'?" Levy blinked when she realized he was talking to the cat. As if in response, the cat stretched, snuggling deeper into Levy's lap.

"Guess he's staying." Levy giggled. "What's his name?"

"Pantherlily," Gajeel spat out. "Though I'm thinkin' of callin' him Asshole," Pantherlily opened an eye, and gave a hint of teeth, as if to say _hell no_.

"Good name," She said with relief. She'd been worried he'd end up like Natsu's poor cat, Happy. Really, there was no dignity with a name like 'Happy.'

"I got class," He said. "You mind watchin' him?"

"Nah," Levy said. "He's not going to cause problems."

"Good." He said. "Text me, so, ah, you know I can let ya know when I'm comin' to get him."

"Sure." She agreed.

It wasn't until he was gone that she realized something. She looked down at the cat, which was looking at her intensely. "Lily," She said already giving the cat a nickname. "Was that his convoluted way of giving me his number? And getting me to text him?"

Pantherlily closed his eyes, and as if pleased, began to purr loudly.

She'd been outsmarted by Gajeel Redfox.

"I'll be damned." She muttered laughing at herself.

This had potential…

* * *

 **Just a random one-shot that kinda got out of control. I feel like I start a fic with a basic idea "HEY! Let's have Gajeel get into a fight and hand Levy NormalCat!Pantherlily!" And then I have to make, like a basis for it...but geez...these fics have mind of their own at times.**

 **Much like _The Feline Fiasco_ this may get random updates from time to time, if my muse lets me. **

**Reviews are appreciated! I read every one and respond! I love hearing from you guys! You rock and keep me writing.**


End file.
